March 29^th 2015.  Palm Sunday

PROCESSIONAL GOSPEL: Mark 11:1-10

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio

Don Fabio’s reflection follows the Gospel reading ...

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PROCESSIONAL GOSPEL: Mark 11:1-10

 When they were approaching Jerusalem, in sight of Bethphage and Bethany, close by the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples and said to them, ‘Go off to the village facing you, and as soon as you enter it you will find a tethered colt that no one has yet ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone says to you, “What are you doing?” say, “The Master needs it and will send it back here directly.” They went off and found a colt tethered near a door in the open street. As they untied it, some men standing there said, ‘What are you doing, untying that colt?’ They gave the answer Jesus had told them and the men let them go. Then they took the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on its back, and he sat on it. Many people spread their cloaks on the road, others greenery which they had cut in the fields. And those who went in front and those who followed were all shouting, “Hosanna! Blessings on him who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessings on the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest heavens!’

The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ

Kieran’s summary . . . The central figure in the processional Gospel is the donkey who carries Jesus into Jerusalem. Much of the Gospel text describes how the animal is to be untied and taken to the Lord because it is needed. When the Lord comes to us, he is always borne on the shoulders of someone else! The Christian life is a life called to service. We bring Christ to others by becoming beasts of burden, carrying the weight of others. Service is all about bearing the burdens of others, not focussing on carrying our own load. The donkey becomes important because he carries Jesus to glory. We too only become significant when we bear the burden and carry Jesus to others. While we carry only our own weight we remain obscure and alone. The liturgy of Palm Sunday relates the Passion of Jesus. We encounter the one who truly bears the burdens of all of us. The first reading from Isaiah tells of the suffering servant who does not turn away from pain and disgrace. Jesus does not turn away from our suffering. The attitude he displays during the passion is of one who can bear all shame and ignominy because he trusts in the Lord. Shame cannot touch him inside because of his unshakeable relation to the Father. How quick we can be to feel ashamed when we do not win, when we look bad in the eyes of others! Let us imitate Jesus who never wavers in placing his trust in the Father. The reading tells us that the suffering servant knows how to speak words of consolation to others because he knows how to listen like a disciple. To be a good leader we must be a good follower, as Jesus was. How often we seek to lead without having ever learned obedience. This Holy Week let us follow the example of Jesus and develop the listening ear of the true disciple!

The central figure in the processional Gospel is a beast of burden.

The liturgy begins with the recollection of the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, and then moves on to the very different kind of reception given to Jesus at the moment of his Passion. Jesus is proclaimed as the “one who comes in the name of the Lord”, bringing about the restoration of the kingdom of his father David. Strangely enough, the central figure in the processional Gospel is the donkey. Jesus sends his disciples to a nearby village with detailed instructions on how to find this donkey and on what to say to his owner. Then the entire sequence of events is repeated in detail. The text doesn’t just say, “The disciples did as they were asked”. Every detail is gone through twice. Why is the story of the donkey given such prominence? In the prophet Zechariah it was foretold that the Messiah would be enthroned after entering the holy city of Jerusalem on a donkey. Jesus thus fulfils a prophecy that contains within it an aspect of humility – the entry into glory borne upon a modest beast of burden.

Jesus is always carried into people’s lives on a beast of burden, a person who acts in the service of others

The donkey is found in a village on the outskirts of the city, and is not even kept in a stall. No-one has ever mounted it previously. An animal that was made for carrying people has never yet fulfilled its function. The fundamental characteristic of this donkey is that it is a beast of burden, and that Jesus has need of it. The fact is that Jesus always enters the lives of people borne by a poor beast of burden. But beasts of burden will never fulfil their function unless someone unties them, unless someone goes to them and announces “The Lord has need of you”. None of us would have Jesus carried into our lives if another person had not taken it upon themselves to bear the weight. Each of us must learn the art of bearing burdens, namely, the art of service. Service always involves carrying the burden of others instead of that of oneself. The Christian life is a life where we are called to bear burdens in this way. It is not important if we are beautiful, capable, or intelligent. What matters is that the Lord unties us from that which impedes us and teaches us how to act in the service of others.

We become important when we carry the Lord instead of ourselves

In the Gospel, the disciples place their mantles on the donkey and the animal takes on a beautiful aspect. We are unimportant for as long as we continue to be directed towards ourselves, but we become significant when we carry the Lord, when the Lord has need of us. What a beautiful thing to discover that the Lord needs us, that we are not useless! The yoke of the Lord is light and easy to bear. Often when we do things for the Lord, we receive thanks and blessings, even though it is really the Lord who accomplishes everything! The donkey in the Gospel must have marvelled at how everyone applauded him. Sometimes we are inclined to think that is we who are deserving of praise, but it is the one that we carry who must be praised alone. Once we learn to carry the Lord we must keep returning to these situations where we can serve to carry him.

We can only speak consolation to others when we learn how to listen to the Lord

The liturgy of Palm Sunday then turns to the events in which we learn of the One who truly carries the burden of all. Jesus had said in Chapter 8 of Mark: “He who wishes to be my disciple must carry his cross and follow me”. In the Gospel reading we see how he himself carries his cross and enters into a state of total service. In a very clear way, Jesus is presented as the servant of all in Mark’s Gospel. In Chapter 10 he says “I did not come to be served but to serve and to give my life in ransom for many”. This logic of service is presented in the first reading from the prophet Isaiah where we listen to the third song of the suffering servant. “The Lord has given me a disciple’s tongue so that I might know how to speak to those who are in despair”. To become beasts of burden of the Lord signifies being able to console the broken hearted. It is interesting that the servant has learned how to listen like a disciple and this is what enables him to speak consolation to others. Good teachers are those who were once good students. Often we try to be good teachers without having ever been good listeners or followers. We want to tell others what to do but we have no notion of true obedience ourselves.

Jesus does not turn away from suffering. He knows that the shame does not touch him inside. He places his trust in the Father who will deliver him

This servant offers his shoulders to those who flog him and his face to those who tear at his beard. He does not turn away from insults and spittle. In tribulation God is near. He does not turn away. We fear rejection and physical pain, but this servant of God has learned to find God in these things. The Lord comes to his aid, we are told, so that he will not be ashamed. We are quick to feel shame when we lose, when we are rejected, when things do not go our way. But the servant of the Lord has discovered that shame does not enter into his heart. He sets his face like stone and is not dismayed because he knows that the Lord will come to his aid. This Sunday we enter into the liturgy of Holy Week, the horror of the sufferings of Christ, illuminated by the light of the Resurrection. This is the Christian way. We poor beasts of burden carry with us the announcement of the victory of the Lord over all anguish. The Lord transforms all paths of sorrow and suffering into paths of life. Only he can do this.

March 22^nd 2015.  Fifth Sunday of Lent

GOSPEL: John 12:20-30

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio

Don Fabio’s reflection follows the Gospel reading ...

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GOSPEL: John 12:20-30

Among those who went up to worship at the festival were some Greeks. These approached Philip, who came from Bethsaida in Galilee, and put this request to him, ‘Sir, we should like to see Jesus.’ Philip went to tell Andrew, and Andrew and Philip together went to tell Jesus. Jesus replied to them

‘Now the hour has come
for the Son of Man to be glorified.
I tell you, most solemnly,
unless a wheat grain falls on the ground and dies, it remains only a single grain;
but if it dies, it yields a rich harvest.
Anyone who loves his life loses it;
anyone who hates his life in this world will keep it for the eternal life.
If a man serves me, he must follow me, wherever I am, my servant will be there too.
If anyone serves me, my Father will honour him.
Now my soul is troubled. What shall I say:
Father, save me from this hour?
But it was for this very reason that! have come to this hour.
Father, glorify your name!’

A voice came from heaven, ‘I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.
People standing by, who heard this, said it was a clap of thunder; others said, ‘It was an angel speaking to him.’

Jesus answered, ‘It was not for my sake that this voice came, but for yours.

‘Now sentence is being passed on this world;
now the prince of this world is to be overthrown.
And when I am lifted up from the earth, I shall draw all men to myself.’
By these words he indicated the kind of death he would die.

 The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ

Kieran’s summary . . . In the Old Testament, the people of Israel never managed to keep the Covenant. The prophet Jeremiah speaks of a future Covenant written on our hearts. How is this new relationship with God to be written on our hearts? In the Gospel, Jesus’ moment has finally arrived. Is this a moment of glory, or ostentatious victory? No, it is the moment when the grain of wheat falls to the earth and dies, yielding a rich harvest. The way of God is not the way of the prince of this world. The prince of this world follows the way of success and self-affirmation. We think that the “good” life is a life of health, entertainment and satisfaction. But Jesus shows us a different way: the way of self-renunciation and abandonment of oneself to God. Good marriages, parents and friendships are made by those who take the path of self-denial and self-giving. But how can we, weak as we are, be transformed from people who seek success and vain glory to people who lose ourselves in God? How can we achieve this attachment to God, the attachment referred to by Jeremiah when he spoke of a covenant written in our hearts? The answer is the life-transforming pardon of God. Through his pardon, offered to us by the Church, Jesus takes away our hankering after glory and the focus on ourselves. Our way of self-conceit is transformed into the self-giving way of Jesus when we experience his life-giving pardon.

The Old Testament is centred on the various Covenants in which God made an alliance with the people, but the people failed to live up to their side of the agreement. The prophet Jeremiah looks forward to a new Covenant written on our hearts.

The Old Testament is centred on the notion of the Covenant. The Covenant concerns the relationship between God and his people and the norms of behaviour that are associated with it. But the people never manage to fulfil these norms! In this context the prophet Jeremiah announces a Covenant of a different sort in which the people will finally manage to respond to the Lord. The new law will no longer be an external code but will be written in their hearts. But in what way will this happen? How will the people attain an attachment to the will of the Father? The text tells us that everyone, old and young, will know God even without the use of instruction. What is the key to this intimate knowledge of God? How do I achieve this profound experience of him that changes my heart? Before considering the answer, which is given in the last part of the first reading, we will turn to the Gospel.

The Gospel announces that Jesus’ moment has finally arrived. Is this a moment of glory, or victory, or self-affirmation? No, it is the moment when the grain of wheat dies to yield new life.

In the Gospel, Jesus’s fame has spread far and wide. Andrew and Philip come to tell the Lord that there are Greeks who wish to see him. All of us want to see Jesus, to meet him, to get to know him. When we go to find him, however, what do we find? The glorious envoy sent by God? Someone who is powerful and capable of imposing his authority on others? Instead we find a grain of wheat that dies. This is the surprising announcement of the Gospel reading. Through our Christian upbringing, we are already aware that Jesus must die on the Cross before rising again. Yet it is always a shock to our way of thinking to reflect on the fact that God does not choose the way of victory, or ostentatious glory, or self-affirmation. God’s way is the way of self-nullification and abandonment, the way of dying in order to give life to others. The image of the grain of wheat is very evocative. It must first undergo a process of decay. At the very moment when it seems to have been ruined, it begins to give rise to a new shoot. The process that appeared to be destroying it enables it to be itself, something that is fundamentally life-giving.

How do we manage to take the path of self-renunciation? By following Jesus, by experiencing his mercy.

Life originates in self-giving. Too often, when we are faced by problems, we think that the solution consists in having security, possessions, affirmation. But the real solution is to lose ourselves in God. How are we to do that with our simple, impoverished capacities? We can do so because Jesus has done so. Jesus manifested the glory of the Father using this way of self-renunciation. The Greeks wanted to see his glory and what they were shown was one who abandoned himself completely in the hands of the Father.

How is the new Covenant written on our hearts? When we experience his grace that transforms us from being self-fixated to abandoning ourselves in the arms of the Father

If we return now to Jeremiah, we find that the last part of the reading is a little surprising. How is this new Covenant to be written in their hearts without instruction of any kind? The Lord will forgive them their iniquity and no longer remember their sins. If we wish to approach God and feel unworthy, the problem is resolved with the experience of pardon. If we have hankerings after glory, we are saved and healed by the humiliation of Christ. All too often our problems are linked to our pretensions and self-conceit. We suffer because we look for glory that does not come. We long for the moment when life recognizes us, compensates us, gives us the satisfactions that we think are rightly ours. In reality, these problems aid us enormously by helping us to grow and become children of God. What is it that really counts? To be contented, to be healthy, to live life from one moment of gratification to the next? Or is it better to learn the art of abandoning oneself into the hands of the Father, and in this way learn to love our brothers and sisters?

The logic of the prince of this world is the logic of success and self-affirmation. This logic can only be opposed by self-abandonment in God. We manage to do this when we experience the healing pardon of God that transforms us.

The Gospel tells us that the prince of this world is now cast out. The Greeks want to see Jesus and expect to see something impressive or spectacular. Instead, Jesus speaks of his death and resurrection, and then mentions the prince of this world. For the logic of the prince of this world is the logic of success and self-affirmation. This logic is the enemy of fraternity, of marriage, of paternity, of service, of social cohesion, and of care of the weak. The logic of success, the logic of the prince of this world, is not beaten by opposing it directly. It is vanquished by abandoning oneself into the hands of the Father. This week we have the announcement of the death and resurrection of Jesus and of the forgiveness of sins. The human being does not need to be stronger, to have more intelligence, to be endowed with more gifts. He needs, in the first place, to be forgiven. The men and women of this world need to be forgiven in order to bring them to full wholeness and health. The forgiveness of the Lord which is made present in the Church is what writes the word of God, the new Covenant, in our hearts.

March 15^th 2015.  Fourth Sunday of Lent

GOSPEL: John 3:14-21

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio

Don Fabio’s reflection follows the Gospel reading ...

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GOSPEL: John 3:14-21

Jesus said to Nicodemus:

‘The Son of Man must be lifted up as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert,
so that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.
Yes, God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son,
so that everyone who believes in him may not be lost
but may have eternal life.
For God sent his Son into the world not to condemn the world,
but so that through him the world might be saved.
No one who believes in him will be condemned;
but whoever refuses to believe is condemned already,
because he has refused to believe in the name of God’s only Son.
On these grounds is sentence pronounced:
that though the light has come into the world
men have shown they prefer darkness to the light
because their deeds were evil.
And indeed, everybody who does wrong hates the light and avoids it,
for fear his actions should be exposed;
but the man who lives by the truth comes out into the light,
so that it may be plainly seen that what he does is done in God.

The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ

Kieran’s summary . . . The Gospel this Sunday has the beautiful statement from John’s Gospel: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son so that whoever believes in him may not be lost but have eternal life”. The Lord presents us with such a marvellous gift, and our incredible dignity lies in the fact that we can freely welcome God’s unconditional love for us. But our freedom can also lead to the abysmal poverty that comes with rejecting the love of God. Every day we make many decisions about our health, our careers, our relationships, but there is one decision in life that stands above all others: will I welcome the light that is coming into the world, the love of God for me as a person? If I decide to accept this love, then my life must change radically. It is not possible to accept this love in an authentic way and continue living the banal life that I lead. Once I accept God’s love for me, then I must renounce my self-absorption, my reliance on my own works, my striving for the approval of others. What an incredible dignity we have been given! The capacity to accept God’s gift of himself or to renounce it! We all fail and we are all in need of pardon. The important point is not the greatness of our sin but the greatness of God’s love for me.

God loved us so much that he gave his only Son, but we must accept that Son. And accepting God’s love means to allow our lives to be changed completely

Lent is a battle for our hearts and for our inner freedom. The Fourth Sunday of Lent is traditionally associated with consolation and joy. Christian joy is something that has its feet firmly on the ground. Our happiness is something that is always threatened. It must be welcomed, received and defended constantly. The Gospel of John has the beautiful statement of God’s radical concern for us: “God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not be lost but may have eternal life”. The sacrifice of a son that was asked of Abraham is now given by God himself out of love for us. This Son represents the gift above all gifts, bestowed on us because we are so important to him. As a result we are presented with the incredible and beautiful task of welcoming this gift, accepting the Son who carries us with him into the love of the Father. This possibility of salvation does not come without risk. We can believe or refuse to believe. And if we believe, then we cannot continue with the same banal lives as previously! The life that has opened itself to faith cannot be the same as a life that is closed to the faith.

Our enormous dignity consists in the fact that we are free to accept God’s love. But we also have the capacity to refuse it and to sink into abysmal poverty

The first reading gives a summary of a dramatic episode in the history of Israel. The Second Book of Chronicles was the final book in the Hebrew Bible, summarizing the narrative contained in the Scriptures themselves. The passage that we read on Sunday tells of the end of the Exile. There are two elements here: there is the joy of liberation, but this is preceded by great suffering. Israel had descended to the depths of its sinfulness. Its leaders had committed infidelity upon infidelity until the nation had fallen into the hands of foreign invaders. The point is that it is very easy to refuse the gift of God. Christian happiness is not guaranteed simply by virtue of the fact that we are baptized. The greatness of the human being is his freedom to choose; and it can also lead him into abysmal poverty. We can say yes or no to God. Our will is frail and our weakness is great, but we have the incredible possibility of accepting freely the love of God.

The principal decision that we have in life is whether or not to accept the love of God

There is one decision in life that stands above all other decisions. On a daily basis we are confronted with choices regarding our health, our careers, our approaches to different issues. But the real decision of life is whether or not to accept the light that is coming into the world. What counts in life is not acceptance by others, or the approval of the world, or whether or not I succeed in my enterprises. The only thing that matters is whether or not I accept the love of God, allow myself to be loved by Him. When the light comes into the world, will I place myself before Him? Poor as I am, I have the awesome capacity to accept the light. The one who does evil hates the light. All of us do things that are wrong and all of us are weak. The question is how attached we are to our own works, how trapped we are within our own self-absorption. The first reading tells of a people who live only for themselves, following their own ways, incapable of placing themselves in the light of God. As Pope Francis says, God never tires of forgiving us, but we tire of asking for forgiveness. On this Sunday of Joy let us ask for forgiveness! And what is forgiveness? What is joy? It is the fact of being welcomed by God even though we are poor. This is true happiness! But it involves renouncing our own false images of success. Coming into the light involves denying our own works and escaping from the illusion of self-sufficiency.

Just as the people in exile were liberated by a gracious act of God, so too the Lord is ready to free us for no other reason than his enormous love for us

The first reading tells us that the people were ready for liberation after seventy years of exile and suffering. At this point it had become very clear that the salvation being offered to them was pure grace, not something that they had won by merit. The joy of liberation, consequently, was not self-celebration but praise of God. Lent is in progress. Let us hurry to welcome the light, poor as we are. The thing to keep in mind is not the greatness of our sin but the greatness of the love of God for us.

March 8^th 2015.  Third Sunday of Lent

GOSPEL: John 2:13-25

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Translated from a homily by Don Fabio Rosini, broadcast on Vatican Radio

Don Fabio’s reflection follows the Gospel reading ...

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GOSPEL: John 2:13-25

Just before the Jewish Passover Jesus went up to Jerusalem, and in the Temple he found people selling cattle and sheep and pigeons, and the money changers sitting at their counters there. Making a whip out of some cord, he drove them all out of the Temple, cattle and sheep as well, scattered the money changers’ coins, knocked their tables over and said to the pigeon-sellers, ‘Take all this out of here and stop turning my Father’s house into a market.’ Then his disciples remembered the words of scripture: Zeal for your house will devour me. The Jews intervened and said, ‘What sign can you show us to justify what you have done?’ Jesus answered, ‘Destroy this sanctuary, and in three days I will raise it up.’ The Jews replied, ‘It has taken forty-six years to build this sanctuary: are you going to raise it up in three days?’ But he was speaking of the sanctuary that was his body, and when Jesus rose from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the scripture and the words he had said.

During his stay in Jerusalem for the Passover many believed in his name when they saw the signs that he gave, but Jesus knew them all and did not trust himself to them; he never needed evidence about any man; he could tell what a man had in him.

The Gospel of the Lord: Praise to you Lord Jesus Christ

Kieran’s summary . . . The Gospel recounts the event of Jesus purifying the Temple and chasing away the things that should not be there. There is a clear parallel between the Temple of Jerusalem and the temple that is our bodies. Each one of us is a temple of the Holy Spirit and in need of the purifying activity of Jesus. The first reading lists the Ten Commandments. In the Old Testament these are always referred to as the “Ten Words”. They were not cold imperatives but statements of a loving dialogue with a providential Father. The Commandments were kept in the Ark of the Covenant in the most sacred part of the Temple. In the same way, the most sacred area deep within each of us should be a place where the word of the Lord dwells. This Sunday’s Gospel should prompt me to ask myself: What is in my heart? A relationship of abandonment to the providential love of God? Or a spirit of profit and self-gain? “To profane the Temple” in the Old Testament meant to place something that should not be there in the Holy of Holies. May the sacred place inside of me not be profane! May it be the place of a relationship of trust with my loving Father!

There is a parallelism in this text between the purification of the Temple in Jerusalem and the need to purify what is inside each one of us, since we are temples of the Holy Spirit.

The last line of this Gospel is a useful way to approach the meaning of the passage, even though it would be very easy not to notice it at all. We are told that Jesus did not need to be told what was in the heart of man, because he already knew. This verse can be used as a lens for viewing the entire story of the purification of the Temple. Jesus arrives at the Temple and discovers animals, doves, money changers and sellers. He fashions a broom and clears all of them away from the entrance to the Temple. The act is clearly premeditated. It is not a case of Jesus losing his temper, flying into a fury and losing control of himself. Such interpretations are  inconsistent with the wider picture of this symbolic, profound action on the part of Jesus. He then makes an extraordinary prophecy about his Passion and Resurrection. John places this event in the second chapter of his Gospel, immediately after the miracle at Cana. Matthew, Mark and Luke recount it to us just as Jesus is entering Jerusalem, shortly before the Passion. But John describes this event just after his account of the transformation of the water into wine, using the very jars used by the Jews for acts of purification. Then he goes to the Temple and cleanses it of the things that ought not be there.

Jesus found the spirit of profit and self-gain in the Temple. What does he see when he gazes inside each one of us?

When the Jewish leaders challenge him about his actions, Jesus begins to speak in a prophetic way about his own body. This connection between temple and the body of Christ is something that we are now well familiar with. The Church is the body of Christ, and each of us is called to be a temple of the Holy Spirit. John’s account contains allusions to all of these elements. At the end of the passage he tells us that Jesus knew what was in the heart of man. In this time of Lent it is important to focus on purification and on what is needed for a pure and healthy heart. “Purification” means “to pass through fire”. What is in our hearts that needs to be passed through fire? When Jesus enters the Temple, he finds merchants. In a parallel way we should realize that when the Lord looks into the interior of each of us, he finds a marketplace. He sees habits and attitudes that use the things of God for our own selfish ends.

The most sacred area of the Temple used to contain the Ten Commandments. These commandments represent a relationship of dialogue and trust with God. What is in inside us, in the most sacred area of our interior lives?

The first reading contains a statement of the Ten Commandments. What is the connection between the Commandments and the purification of the Temple? The Ten Commandments were contained in the Ark of the Covenant, and the Ark was placed in the most sacred part of the Temple. The Temple was divided into different sections. The Court of the Gentiles was an area where even the non-Jews could enter. Then there were areas reserved only for Jews, for the tribe of Levi, for the priest whose turn it was to offer the sacrifices, and finally there was the most internal zone, the heart of the Temple, the Holy of Holies where the Ark was kept. To profane the Temple meant to put something in that area that did not belong there. When the Gospel says, “Jesus knew what was at the heart of man”, we should reflect on what ought to be at the heart of any temple of the Lord. In the Latin tradition we speak of the “Ten Commandments” but in the Old Testament these were always referred to as the “Ten Words”. In other words, they were not abstract, cold imperatives, but a relationship of dialogue with the Lord. What is in man? Either God is at the heart of each one of us, speaking to us as an intimate providential Father, or there is deceit, the darkness that comes with refusing the authority of God. When the latter is the case, profit and conceit take over in the Temple. Jesus says, “Do not make a market of this place!” Either we have the paternal wisdom of God at heart, wherein we entrust ourselves to his providence in the Holy of Holies within each of us, or we are a marketplace, consumed by a spirit of self-profit that is never satisfied.

May this Sunday be a time when the sword of God’s word strikes us within, making us ponder what it is that lies in our hearts! Is it a relationship of trust with God, or a spirit of egoism and self-gain?

In this time of Lent we must focus on the state of our hearts. The word of the Lord this Sunday is like a sword that strikes at us within, enquiring what has taken the place of the relationship of trust with God. What is within our hearts? One of the Psalms says: “If you do not speak to me, then I am like one who goes down in the pit”. But if God speaks to my heart, then I am truly alive, happy and well.